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A photograph of a ritual puja set up in a plain white-walled room. Two men in white dhotis and white shirts sit cross-legged on a mat at left, one wearing a red tilak on his forehead and both wearing dark beaded malas. In front of them, rows of small leaf bowls holding offerings are laid out across the floor. Behind the offerings, a white-draped altar of stacked white blocks is decorated with scattered pink flowers, brass oil lamps with flower garlands, a bowl with incense sticks, and a bunch of bananas. A framed portrait above the altar, garlanded with red and white flowers, shows a figure in saffron-orange robes with a long mala, seated with hands raised in a blessing gesture against a light backdrop.

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A homa fire ritual in a white-walled room. A man in white clothes kneels at a brick-built fire pit, feeding a small flame with a ladle and sticks while holding a brass vessel. Behind him, a second man in white kneels with palms pressed together in prayer, and a woman in a white and pink-trimmed outfit on the left also has hands folded. Above the altar hangs a framed portrait of a saffron-robed, long-haired figure seated among trees, framed by a thick garland of red and pink roses and white jasmine. Brass lamps with flowers stand on either side, bananas are heaped on the right, and small offering dishes with petals surround the fire pit.Four people in white clothes sit on the floor before a homa fire pit built of stacked white bricks with ash, burning wood and a small flame. Two men on the left have their palms pressed together in anjali, one with long hair and a black cord necklace. A bearded man and a woman with a long braid on the right also sit with hands joined. Rows of small clay lamps and offering plates with fruit and flowers line the floor. On a draped white table against the wall stands a framed photo of a figure in orange robes with a rudraksha-style necklace, seated beneath a tree and surrounded by pink flower garlands, with a kalasha, bananas and two brass lamps beside it. The framed figure is a printed portrait, not a physical person.2009-10-10A photograph of a small white-walled room where a fire homa is being performed. Two men in white dhotis and white shirts sit on the floor beside a brick fire pit with flames, one stirring offerings with a ladle. A woman in a white sari with blue embroidery sits nearby, and a seated person in orange and blue clothing is at the left edge. Rows of small clay lamps with wicks cover the floor in front. Behind the fire is a framed portrait of a figure in orange robes with a mala, garlanded with flowers and marigolds, and a row of fruit sits on the right. Red rose petals are scattered on the bricks.A puja ceremony in a temple hall with a red and white striped wall. Three men sit on orange cloth; the two on the left wear white kurtas with yellow shawls, and the central man wears a white kurta and yellow shawl with hands folded in prayer. Dozens of small brass oil lamps (lamps) fill the floor in front of them, with banana leaves, fruit, flowers and a brass plate. Behind them a framed photograph of a smiling woman in orange robes with a beaded necklace is garlanded with red and yellow flowers, placed on a red velvet chair. A carved stone shrine and a seated deity murti are visible in the background, with a red and orange hanging cloth.2010-06-06A homa is performed in a plain whitewashed hall with a brick-lined fire pit burning with a bright flame. A man in white kurta and white dhoti with a rudraksha mala sits cross-legged feeding the fire with a ladle, and a woman in white sari with gold border sits beside him with a brass plate of offerings. Oil lamps flank a draped table holding a framed portrait of a saffron-clad figure garlanded with flowers, with brass pots and fruit below. Brass and clay dishes of offerings are arranged on a white cloth in front.2009-10-10Three people sit on a white cloth on a bare concrete floor during a homa-style fire ritual in a plain whitewashed room. Left, a young man in white dhoti and shirt with a sacred thread sits cross-legged with hands joined. Center, an older man with glasses wears a white shirt and a rudraksha-style mala and sits with palms pressed together. Right, a woman in a white sari with a gold border and a long plait sits with hands folded. Between them a small square fire pit of stacked bricks holds a flame, with a brass vessel and spoon nearby. Rows of small clay lamps and offering bowls with leaves and grains fill the foreground. Behind them a table draped in white holds brass oil lamps, bananas and a flower-garlanded framed portrait of a saffron-robed figure seated beneath a tree, with a decorative flower arrangement in a basket.2009-10-10January 14 20102010-01-14January 01 20102010-01-01December 10 20072007-12-10Indoor ritual scene in a home room with a red refrigerator and glass cabinet behind. A man in white dhoti and shirt with an orange shawl bends over a low altar, pouring from a steel vessel while a woman in a brown sari with a red blouse holds a metal pot beside him. Seated devotees on the floor include a man in white with an orange shawl, a young man in white with a rudraksha mala, and women in white and orange saris. The altar holds many clay lamps, a brass oil lamp with a burning flame, bundles of sticks, mounds of red bricks decorated with flowers, and fruit and flower offerings on plates. A framed portrait on the wall shows a seated figure in white on a throne with a garland above. A homa-style fire ritual with offerings in progress.2006-10-252008 - Post August - Powerful homa in Sirkazhi by trained AcharyaIndoor ritual scene in a plain whitewashed hall during a Maheshwara Pooja. Seated men in white dhotis with orange-red shoulder cloths sit on the floor with hands joined in namaskar, facing a draped white chair and a central framed portrait of a bearded figure in orange robes, a long orange-beaded mala and a raised hand, garlanded with red flowers. A small framed photo sits on the white-draped chair. Brass pots, banana-leaf plates of food, glasses and offerings are arranged on a striped mat and floor in front of them, and tall bamboo poles with orange cloth bundles stand along the right and left. The portrait is a depiction, not a physical person in the room.2007-06-22